Reaganomics is what happened to our economy

[freedom fighter jh]

5. I wonder why they chose 1973 as a starting point and what would happen if they chose a different

year?

In 1973, the three curves meet at 100%. That's because of the way the graph is set up -- all data is in reference to that year. But the trend does not start there. Notice that in the years 1967 to 1973, blue is losing and red is gaining, just like in 1973 and after. So if data were in reference to 1967 instead of 1973, you would still see the same trend, but the fanning out would start sooner. It's not that people at all levels gained equally in 1947 through 1963, it's that their incomes were in the same proportion during those years as they were in 1973.

In other words, the graph's appearance depends heavily on the year that is chosen as a reference point.

So I wonder why 1973 is chosen as a reference point.